Hunting transitional elk

[mtwarden]

I got a crash course on hunting elk that have moved out of where I would normally find them. We got a foot of snow opening day and just kept adding to it throughout the season (and with temps averaging ~ 20 degrees below normal). At one point I was wearing snowshoes.

I was seeing a few tracks, but nothing like I would normally. I started hunting fresh tracks, only to find (several times!) that the elk I were following were not sticking around, just moving through.

Twice I saw decent bunches of elk a long ways off utilizing meadows in areas I've never hunted. Twice I was able to follow up the next morning sneaking on these meadows at daylight, twice I found a ton of fresh sign and elk that have moved on.

The season was getting close to passing and yet I still clung onto the area I knew (still seeing a few fresh tracks here and there). I hiked a long ways to a very high open meadow only to find old tracks; wasn't overly surprised. I started glassing and was seeing the same thing, very few tracks and nothing that looked overly fresh.

For some reason I started glassing well beyond anything I could hike too and in a direction I've never hunted. Eventually a long ways off I started seeing some meadows that looked like they were seeing a lot of activity. Hmmmm. Oh and it happened to be a prime wintering area too.

After an hour of map studying, I headed over to that area (a couple hour drive!) for an afternoon/evening hunt. Found a lot of fresh tracks/sign and just at the end of shooting light bumped about a dozen elk near the truck. Much better.

Evidently I'm a slow learner, but I do learn I was able to notch my cow tag the very next day.

This was an abnormal year for sure, but if happens again and I'm not finding elk- I won't waste weeks hunting an area where elk sign is thin and the little sign you find are elk simply transitioning through and heading for their wintering grounds!

 

[svivian]

Same thing happened to me this year... normal area had over knee deep snow and only tracks to be found were random bulls moving around with no real pattern. Unfortunately there was a band of private that runs along the middle elevation before it opens back up to public even lower down.

you have to get humbled every now and then!

 

[hunterjmj]

Same thing here. Snow kept getting deeper and deeper. Couldn't cover the country I normally do and didn't have snow shoes with me. 7 days of post holing will wear a guy out. Pulled out a day early as the road in was drifting. Spent 12 hours digging drifts to get out 16 miles. We did get a sixer in the group but that snow definitely made hunting a challenge.

 

[Marble]

There was a thread here a few weeks ago about how much snow will move elk. Do a search and read through it.. very informative.

Elk will move to where they can get enough food to justify the work needed to get it. Elk have a digestive track that is much more efficient than deer and can handle a larger variety of feed to. That's also why deer move down before Elk generally.

I think what the OP learned this year is to be adaptive. If you are not seeing tracks in the snow. MOVE!

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[mtwarden]

I read through that thread- indeed good information!

For me it was a matter of not wanting to believe that the "local" elk had moved out. This was compounded by seeing occasional fresh tracks (and on a couple of occasions even seeing elk)- what I didn't realize (and now do), these were elk simply moving through the area I normally hunt and heading for "greener pastures".

There's always a chance of bumping into these moving/transitioning elk, but the odds appeared to be much better on figuring out where everyone was moving to

 

[Bwblodg]

Have been hunting the same area since 1983 Every year is completely different. The animal patterns and population has changed. With predators, fires, drought, access and reduction in tag.
Have had to adapt to all of this every time I lucky enough to get a tag. Fortunately the units are big enough usually able to find them.